The Topic

Today many State Legislatures are debating 'social values' issues like abortion and same-sex marriage. This deliberative poll will begin a process aimed at helping PA State Legislators hear and understand the informed voice of the people in regard to a proposed amendment defining marriage as between one man and one woman.

The particular focus of the discussion will be on comparing and contrasting the proposed Pennsylvania Marriage Protection Amendment with Vermont’s Civil Union Laws and the Massachusetts Supreme Court Decision: Goodridge v. Department of Public Health.

User Guide and Registration

Download a User Guide describing the features of PICOLA and how to use them..

Live Discussions

For Alumni off-site, there will be two live roundtable discussions. These will be designed to allow Alumni from across the country to participate in the conversation.

Asynchronous Forum

A threaded, online conversation will start immediately after the November 14th deliberation and continue through Monday, November 19th. This will be available to all participants.

Library, Panel, and Survey

The Library area contains background materials and other resources relating to the Issue of Marriage in America.

In the future, we will tape the expert panel discussions and make them available for review and further discussion.

A survey tool will be availabe for online Alumni participants. It will be similar to the pre- and post surveys administered to those on campus.